Lu Xinyi froze, not knowing how to react. Her Grandmother Tang? She had only met the old woman once, and that was during her mother's funeral. Her Grandma Lu insisted on never showing herself again to young Xinxin. Her young mind couldn't understand what was happening back then, but the memory of a woman wailing on her mother's tomb—asking for forgiveness—was imprinted on her mind.
Seeing her blank expression, Shen Yi called out her name.
"Xinxin?"
His wife turned her head to face him, but it was clear that she was still trying to understand the implications of her grandmother's sudden visit.
"If you aren't sure and you don't want to see her…" Shen Yi started but stopped when she raised her hand.
"It's not that I don't want to see her, but what's the purpose of her stay?" she refuted.
Clearly, her Grandmother Tang had been staying with the Tangs for the past years and for her to decide to visit her only granddaughter at this time; wasn't that suspicious?
Shen Yi's frown deepened as if he was contemplating how to explain the situation to his wife.
Lu Xinyi's hand reached out to touch his arm. "Is there something you want to tell me?"
"Your grandmother…" Shen Yi's eyes met her inquisitive gaze. "She had a stroke."
Her eyes widened slightly. "Is sh-she…?"
"She's alright now. She's healing well from her last surgery. The doctor said it might reoccur again, and she needed constant care and monitoring," he explained.
Lu Xinyi's right eye twitched. She had a lot of things to deal with so why did her grandmother choose to stay with them then? Please don't tell her that, due to Tang Lingfei's old age, she was starting to get sentimental.
When her parents' died, she had no one but Grandma Lu to look after her. She couldn't understand why there was a ruckus about her custody and why her Grandma Lu asked her not to associate herself with the Sun and Tang families.
"And she's staying here because?"
"She said she wanted to meet you. She's afraid that if it happens again and she dies, she'll regret not having to meet and reconcile with you. If you don't like to, I'll give them a call," Shen Yi insisted earnestly, with a determined expression.
If his wife didn't like it, then he wouldn't force her. His home was her home, too. If she wasn't comfortable receiving a guest, he needed to understand and respect her wishes.
"It's fine. I guess our meeting is long overdue." There's no reason for her to object anyway.
---
"So… how did Xin'er take the news?" Tang Shui asked nervously.
Shen Yi leaned on his seat and sighed, his fingers tapping his desk out of habit.
"As expected, she was surprised by the news; but she didn't decline Lady Tang's stay with us," he answered politely.
Tang Shui released a breath he didn't know he was holding. That was a good sign. If Lu Xinyi was willing to meet his aunt, then maybe there's a chance that the relationship between the two could be amended.
"What do you want to do about the rumors about Xin'er?" he changed the topic. His voice was strict and colder this time. The news about the ShenLu marriage was used to block Chu Ting's defamation anyway.
pαndα`noνɐ1~сoМ After the announcement spread, two media outlets released news about Shen Yi and Lu Xinyi accusing both parties of faking their marriage for the sake of clearing Shen Yi's reputation and Lu Xinyi's cheating to attend the prestigious culinary school.
Both media outlets weren't under the influence of the Tang family's Griffin Entertainment. Their articles were both slanderous, angering not only Tang Shui but also his father. Their displeasure rose to another level when they investigated and found who the culprit behind these nasty rumors was.
The Chu family was really irritating and bold to challenge the Tang family! Not only did they start to slander Lu Xinyi, but they also sent someone to harm her that morning at Silver Leaf premises. It was a good thing that Lu Xinyi finally had her own bodyguards, or else news about her being injured would fill the news.
"The news has been contained," he told Shen Yi, "but now that the Chu family is splashing dirty water at our Xin'er, then they should expect that the Tang family would retaliate.
At his question, Shen Yi's eyes narrowed. It seemed that Chu Ting hadn't learned her lessons from his wife yet. If the four million dollars wasn't enough for her to back down, then the Chu family had left him with no other choice.
"Our Shen family will release an official statement over this afternoon to admit the marriage. As for those who released the articles, I'll let the Tang family deal with it." He and Lu Xinyi had nothing to hide anyway. By announcing their marriage, it would also give his wife some protection against those who'd dare to harm her.
Since Lu Xinyi didn't object to disclosing their relationship now (not that she was able to deny it), they could take this opportunity to strike down not only the rumors about him but also his potential love rival… or so he thought.
Shen Yi had considered all the benefits and consequences of his decision. Although he felt guilty not waiting for his wife's approval over the matter.
Personally, Shen Yi didn't care about his reputation, but he didn't want Lu Xinyi to be dragged with it. He wouldn't tolerate anyone who's badmouthing his wife. He was considering how to strike back the Chu family, crippling them for good.
Generally, the best way to handle this situation was to ignore the scandal and shift the public's attention to something else. The masses were forgetful, and both Lu Xinyi and Shen Yi weren't public personalities anyway.
Shen Yi's consideration and care for their Xin'er improved Tang Shui's impression of his niece's husband. As a matter of fact, he felt that Shen Yi's cool and decisive nature was well-suited to his niece's temperament.
"Then, we'll try to control the news from our end. If you need to hold a conference to clear the issue, just give me a call; and we will handle it."
"Thank you for your assistance, Director Tang."
The older man laughed on the other line.
"Shen Yi. There's no need to be so formal. You can call me Uncle Shui just like what Xin'er calls me. You're her husband and our in-law. I don't know the nature of your meeting and how the two of you ended being husband and wife, but since our Xin'er decided to marry you, you have to cherish and try to understand each other more. Even though our family regretted not being there to support her, we truly wish her to be happy."
Naturally, the Tang family cared about Lu Xinyi's happiness more than anything else. It didn't matter if she wouldn't forgive their shortcomings as long as she would be happy and well taken care of.
"Don't worry, Uncle. Xinxin is a wonderful woman. I'll protect and take care of her with the best of my abilities." No matter what, she'd be his utmost priority even if he had to hurt himself in the process of protecting her.
Although they were talking over the phone, Tang Shui could hear the gentleness on Shen Yi's voice when he talked about Lu Xinyi.
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